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TableofContents
IntroductionTheStartingPointYournamein3-DDrawaboxusingperspective
Twoboxes,onevanishingpointFourboxes,onevanishingpointGettingitright(andwrong)
TheHorizon(eyelevel)Perspectiveinaction:aroadPerspectiveinaction:aninterior
DividingspacesevenlyAbridgeTwo-pointperspective
ArampForexpertsonly!Vanishingpoints……andcameralensesMoreaboutthehorizonandeyelevelCurvedobjectsin3-DA3-Dcheckerboard
Perspectiveinaction:ahouseAddingshadowsin3-D
LightsourcebehindMoreshadowsin3-DLightsourceinfront
3-pointperspectiveAnotherwaytodividespace4-pointperspective?ThelaserparadoxMultiplevanishingpoints
Remember…PracticeSaveyourdrawings!
Publicationinfo
Introduction
3-D means“threedimensional.”
It’seasytodrawfromsidetosideonyourpaper,usingitswidth.It’seasytodrawfromtoptobottomonyourpaper,usingitsheight.Buthowdoyoudrawsomethinggoingawayfromyou,intothedistance?Howdoyoucreatedepth(thethirddimension)inyourdrawing?Theanswerislinearperspective,atechniquefirstdevelopedalmost500yearsago,duringtheRenaissance.Asyouflipthroughmyillustrations,thismayseemlikereallycomplicatedandtechnicalstuff.Anditis…sortof.Thosecleverartistswhofiguredthisoutweren’ttryingtomakeyourlifeeasy!Theyonlywantedtomakerealisticpictures.
Fortunately,you’llfindthatthebasicsreallyareprettysimple.Better,youdon’tneedmuchbeyondthebasicstomakesomeprettycooldrawings.Bestofall,perspectivecanmakeyourdrawingslookrealinawayyoucan’tachievewithoutit.You’llneedafewsupplies,somepatience,andapositiveattitude.Expecttomakemistakesasyoulearn,andkeepasmileonyourface:witheachmistakeyoulearnanotherwaynottodoit!
Findacomfortableplacetodraw–withdecentlight,soyoucanseewhatyou’redoing.Amechanicalpencilworksbestforthistypeofdrawing.Havearulerorstraightedgehandy.It’sverydifficulttodrawinperspectivewithoutone.Ifyouhaveone,useaT-squareandtriangle.You’llprobablywantaseparateeraser(theeraseronyourpencilwilldisappearquickly).Myfavoritetypeisakneadedtype,availableinartsupplyandcraftstores.Patience:payattentiontotheconcepts.Doplentyofpracticedrawings!
Pleasenote:inthisebook,instructionscomeaftertheillustrationtheyreferto.
TheStartingPoint
Drawsixcircles.
Makeadotsomewhereinthemiddleofthecircles.Thiswillbecomethevanishingpoint.
Usingaruler,makestraightlinesfromthedottotheoutsideedgesofthecircles.
Lookatyourdrawing.Doesitlooklikesomethinggoingfarawayfromyou,orrushingtowardyou?That’sthewholepointofthevanishingpoint.
Nowmakecurvedlinesto“chopoff”thefarends.Erasethevanishingpointandstraightlinesclosetoit.
Sowhathaveyoujustdrawn?
Mighttheybepowerpolesonadistantasteroid?
Oraconventionofastronomerssearchingforpowerpolesonadistantasteroid?
Oraprintingpress,rollingoutthelatestnewsaboutaconventionofastronomersdiscoveringpowerpolesonadistantasteroid?
Orisitsomethingelse?
Youdecide!
Onyourown
Experimentwithdifferentshapesandvanishingpoints.Getusedtodrawingstraightlinesatdifferentanglesfromthevanishingpoint,becauseyou’llbedoingalotofitwithyourperspectivedrawings.
Makesomedrawingswithlinesextendingallthewaytothevanishingpoints.
Thentry“choppingoff”morecomplicatedshapes.
Havefun!
Yournamein3-D
IfyournameisSophronia,youcanjusttracethisone.But,gollygee,I’llbetyourname’snotSophronia.Inthatcase,followtheinstructions.
Drawacurvedline.Lightlywriteyournameonit.
Maketheletterswider.
Addavanishingpoint.
Startingatoneend,usingastraightedge,makelinestoconnectthevanishingpointwitheveryedgeandangleofthelettersofyourname.
Makesureyou’vegoteverylineinplace!
“Chopoff”thebacksofeachletterbycarefullycopyingtheshapeofthefront.
Eraseguidelinesandadmireyourwork.Prettycool,eh?
Nowyoucantakeittothenextlevelbyaddingshadingtotheletters.
IfyournameisSophronia,andyousimplytracedthis,doanotherdrawing,usingyourbestfriend’snameinstead.
Aslongasit’snotSophronia.
Drawaboxusingperspective
Thinkofthisboxasthebasicbuildingblockoflinearperspective.You’lluseitalot.
Drawasquare.Makeasmalldotforthevanishingpoint.Fromit,drawlightguidelinestothreecornersofthebox.
Guidelineshelpyousetupyourdrawing.Sincetheywon’tbepartofyourfinaldrawing,dothemlightlysotheywilleraseeasily.
Repeattheshapeofthefronttomaketheback(onehorizontalline,onevertical).
Erasetheguidelinesyounolongerneed.
Voila!Aboxinperspective!
Onyourown:drawthisboxwithitsvanishingpointsindifferentdirections,closerandfartheraway.
Twoboxes,onevanishingpoint
Oneboxgood,twoboxesbetter! Heretheyshareacommonvanishingpoint.
Drawaboxwithavanishingpointliketheoneonthepreviouspage.Addanothersquarenexttoit.
Fromthreecornersofthesecondsquare,drawstraightguidelinestothesame
vanishingpoint.
Addhorizontalandverticallinesforthebackedgesofthesecondbox.
Eraseguidelines.
Nice!Twoconvincingboxesinperspective,evenwithnothingelseinthepicture!
Onyourown:drawtwosquareswithavanishingpointdirectlyaboveoneofthem.Addguidelinesandbackedges.
LOOK!Oneboxneedsonlytwoguidelinesinsteadofthree,becauseonlythetopbackedgeshows.Drawtwosquareswithavanishingpointbelowandbetweenthem,andturnthemintoboxes.Eraseguidelinestofinishyourdrawing.
Nowdrawtwosquareswithavanishingpointdirectlybelowoneofthem,andturnthemintoboxes.
Youcanseethatthisisthesameasthefirstdrawing,onlyupside-down.The3-Dtechniqueworksthesamenomatterwherethevanishingpointlies.
Fourboxes,onevanishingpoint
Drawfoursquareswithavanishingpointdirectlyinthemiddleofthegroup.Addguidelinesandbackedges.Eraseyourguidelines.(I’veleftminetoshowyouhowIdrewthem.)
Compareyourvanishingpointdrawingtothesefourboxeswhichuseonlyparallellinestocreatedepth.Canyouseethedifference?Parallellinessimplydon’tcreatethesamefeelingofdepthwhenyouhaveseveralobjectsinadrawing.
YoucanfindexampleslikethisinEuropeanpaintingsfromtheMedievalperiod,beforeasystematicapproachtoperspectivehadbeendeveloped.
Gettingitright(andwrong)
Onyourown:drawaboxinperspective,usingavanishingpoint.Nowaddasecondboxbehindit,usingthesamevanishingpointguidelines.Thenaddanotherbox,andanother.Noticehowmuchsmallertheyget.Thisreallycreatesasenseofdepthinthepicture.
Notehowunrealisticthefourboxesbelowlookwhendrawnwithparallellines.Allfourboxesareexactlythesamesize(measurethem!),butyoureyeandbrainexpectthemostdistanttoappearsmallerthantheclosest.Instead,itactuallyappearslarger!
Whatifyousimplymakethemoredistantboxessmaller,whilestilldrawingwithparallellines?You’llseethatitdoesn’tquitelookright,especiallycomparedtothefirstdrawing,withitssinglevanishingpoint.
TheHorizon(eyelevel)
Perspectivedrawingstartedwithbuildings,whichsitontheground.Ifyoufollowthegroundlevelforasfarasyoucansee,youcometothehorizon,whereskyandearthappeartomeet.Inthisexample,youarelookingdownontheboxes,andthehorizonappearsabovethem.
Evenifyoucan’tactuallyseeit,thehorizonisalwaysthere.Todrawabuildingliketheoneattheleft,youhavetoknow(ordecide)wherethehorizonlies.Ifyoulookclosely,youcanseeadottedlineinthedrawingrepresentingthehorizon.
Thehorizonalsorepresentsyoureyelevelinthedrawing.Ifyouwalkedupto
theblocksinthisdrawing,wherewouldyoureyebe?Howmuchtalleraretheblocksthanyou?
Onyourown:
Findimagesinbooksoronlinewithbuildingsinthem.Lookforperspectiveatwork.Locatethehorizonandvanishingpoints.
Perspectiveinaction:aroad
Drawahorizontallineforthehorizonnearthemiddleofyourpaper.Leaveplentyofroomaboveandbelowit.Placeavanishingpointnearthecenterofthehorizon.
Fromthevanishingpoint,drawtwolinesatanangledownward.
Drawtwomoreverylightlinesfromthevanishingpoint,closetogetherinthecenteroftheroad.Dividethemhorizontallytomakethethickdottedlinerunningdownthemiddleoftheroad.
Inthisphoto,youcanclearlyseethelinesconvergingonavanishingpoint.I wantedtotakeapictureofarealroad,butthatseemedalittledangerous.Soinsteadofarealroad,yougetarailroad.Theprincipleisthesame.
Sincewewantthistobearealisticscene,addsomesquigglylinesjustabovethehorizon.Youknowthey’resquigglylines.Iknowthey’resquigglylines.Butsomeoneelselookingatyourdrawingwillthink,“Ooh,look—mountains!”
Totherightoftheroad,makeaverticalpowerpole.Tocheckvertical,lookattheedgeofyourpaper.
Thepowerpoleisalongcylinder.Becauseitcrossesthehorizon,you’relookingupatthetopofitanddownatthebottomofit.Imaginelookingupanddownatamuchsmallercylinder—canyouseewhyboththetopandbottomofthepower
polearerounded?
Fromthepowerpole,drawtwoguidelinestothevanishingpoint.
Rememberthatguidelineswillnotremaininyourfinisheddrawing,sodrawthemlightlysotheycanbeerased.
Addasecondpowerpole,extendingfromoneguidelinetotheother.Placeitabouthalfwayfromthefirstpowerpoletothevanishingpoint.Thesecondpowerpoleneedstobethinnerthanthefirst(sinceit’sfartheraway),andagaincheckthesideofyourpapertomakesureit’svertical!
Addanotherpowerpole,fromoneguidelinetotheother,abouthalfwaybetweenthesecondpowerpoleandthevanishingpoint.Thethirdpowerpoleshouldbethinnerstill,andstillvertical.Bynowyourbrainmightbescreamingatyoutomakethepolesleanoutward.Again,lookattheedgeofyourpaperforaverticalreference.
Keepaddingpowerpolesuntilyoucan’taddanymore!Noweraseyourguidelines.
Timeout!
Sofar,thisdrawingmaybegoingperfectlysmoothlyforyou.Still,pauseamomenttocomparetheseexampleswithyourpowerpolesjustincase.
They’releaning.Ifyoursare,it’sbesttostartagain.Lookcarefullyatthesideofyourpaperasyoudraw.Oruseadrawingtoolsuchasatriangle.Orperhapsdrawonapieceofnotebookpaperturnedsideways,sothelittlebluelinesrunvertically.
They’rethesamethickness.Thepowerpolesgetshorterfartheraway—andtheyalsogetthinner.
They’reevenlyspaced.Increatingtheillusionofdepthinyourdrawing,youhavetowatcheverydetail:youneedtodrawthesmallerpowerpolesclosertogetherastheygointothedistance.
Drawshorthorizontalcrossarmstocarrythewiresoneachpole.
Ontheleftsideofeachcrossarm,makealittlespotfortheinsulator,whichkeepsthewirefromshort-circuitingonthewoodormetalpole.Fromoneinsulatortoanother,makeaswoopingline.Fromthepoleclosesttoyou,continuethelinetotheedgeofthepicture.
Addanotherwire.Notehowitdisappearsbehindthepoles.
Now,ontheleftsideoftheroad,drawashortverticalfencepost.Fromthetopandbottom,drawlightguidelinestothevanishingpoint.
Addmorefenceposts,betweenthetopandthebottomguideline,gettingsmallerandclosertogetherastheygointothedistance.Addlinesforwires,convergingonthevanishingpoint.Drawlinesstraightouttothesidetomakethefenceturnawayfromtheroad.Theyshouldbehorizontal.
Fromadistantasteroid,amysteriouscrafthasarrivedtoinspectpowerpoles.Drawthecraft.
Fromthesidesofthemysteriouscraft,drawtwolightguidelinestothevanishingpoint.Addthesecondcraft,insidetheguidelines.
It’seasytomakeitlean,whichyoudon’twant.Startwithahorizontalline(thehorizontalaxisoftheellipse)andyoucanavoidthatcommonmistake.
Addmoremysteriouspowerpoleinspectioncraft,takingcaretokeepthemhorizontal.
Youcanuseseveral“tricks”tomakeyourdrawinglookmorereal.Becauseoftheatmosphere,moredistantobjectshavelesscontrast.Inotherwords,thedarkroadgetslighterinthedistance,whilethewhitegroundgetsslightlygrey.Addhazyshadows,andafewcurlymarksinthesky.Theymayenduplookinglikecloudsifyoudothemright!
Addrealisticdetailstomakeyourdrawingmorebelievable.Usingyourknowledgeof3-Ddrawing,addamovingtruck,carryingtelescopestoafar-offmountainforaconventionofastronomersinsearchofpowerpolesondistantasteroids.Createsomegiantmutantarachnids,whichmusthavesomethingtodowiththosemysteriouscraft……anythingtomakethedrawingmorebelievable.
Perspectiveinaction:aninterior
Perspectiveworksinsideaswellasoutside.Trydrawingthisinteriorview,usingavanishingpointtocreatedepth.
Startwithalargerectangle.Placethevanishingpointoff-center.
Drawstraightlinesconnectingeachcornertothevanishingpoint.
Drawahorizontallinetomakethebottomofthebackwall.
Wherethebottomofthewallintersectsthelinefromthevanishingpoint,drawaverticallineforthesideofthewall.
Makeanotherhorizontallineforthetopofthewall.
Completethebackwallbydrawingasecondverticalline.
Fromthevanishingpoint,drawtwomoreguidelinesalongtherightsidewall.
Beforegoingfurther,eraseallthelinesinsidetheareaofthebackwall.Butdon’terasethevanishingpoint.Youstillneedit!
Wherethetwoguidelinesintersectthebackwall,maketwohorizontallinesacrossthebackwall.
Drawtwomoreguidelineswherethehorizontallinesintersectthesidewall.
Drawverticallinesfordoorsontherightsideofthehallway.Makethecloserdoorwiderthantheonefartheraway.
Drawlinesforthetopsofthedoors.Eraseguidelinesnexttothedoors.
Drawtwohorizontalguidelinesfromthebottomcornersofthedoors.Theseallowyoutoplacetwodoorsinthesamepositionacrossthehall.
Fromthoseguidelines,drawverticallinesforthesidesofthetwodoors.
Lineupyourruleronthevanishingpoint,thenaddthetopsofthedoorsontheleftside.
Drawthedoorsonthebackwall.
Drawasmanydetailsasyoucantocreatethefeelingofdepth.Addlightsoverhead,acarpetonthefloor,andabulletinboardonthewall.
Addshadinganddetailstocompleteyourdrawing.Ofcourseyoucanaddpeopletoyourdrawingaswell—justmakesuretheyappearsmallerfartheraway!
Dividingspacesevenly
Howdoyouknowwhatsizetomakeobjectsinperspective?Yourbestguideisyoureye.Ifyouwanttodivideanareamoreprecisely,here’satechniqueyoucanuse.
Drawthehorizon(evenifyoucan’tseeitinthepicture),andmakeavanishingpointofftotheside.
Fromthisvanishingpoint,drawaguidelinetointersectwhatyou’redividing—inthiscase,thecarpet.
Wheretheguidelineintersectstheedgeofthecarpet,drawahorizontallineacrossthecarpet.
Wherethehorizontallineintersectstheothersideofthecarpet,drawanotherguidelinebacktothevanishingpoint.
Wherethisguidelineintersectstheotheredgeofthecarpet,drawanotherhorizontalline.
Wherethishorizontallineintersectstheothersideofthecarpet,drawanotherguidelinetothevanishingpoint.Andsoon.Remember,youdon’thavetodrawyourguidelinesallthewaytothevanishingpoint.Youendupwithaneatlydividedareathataccuratelyportraysanevenlydividedspaceinyourpicture.
Abridge
Reflectionscanmakeanimpressiveadditiontoyourdrawing.Trythem!
Drawtheshapeyousee.
Addstairstepsonbothsides.(Noticethatyou’vealreadydrawnareflectionofsorts—thetwosidesmirroreachother.)
Drawthehorizonandavanishingpointabovethesteps.Usingaruler,drawguidelinesfromeachangleofthebridgebacktowardthevanishingpoint.Notethatyoudon’tneedtodrawtheguidelinesallthewaytothevanishingpoint.
Addsomeshadingunderneaththebridge.
Drawthesidesofastreammeanderingfromthehorizon,andrunningunderthebridge.Takeyourtimedrawingthis—it’snotsoeasytomakeitlookgood!
Addmountainsinthebackground,someshadingalongthestream,acoupleoffishplayinginit.Andwhileyou’reatit,howaboutdrawingareflectionofthebridgeinthestream?
Hint:ifyouhavetroublefiguringthisout,tryimaginingthelandandwaterreflecting,asthoughtheentirebridgeweresittingonamirror.Drawthewholebridge,thenerasethepartsontheland.Tomakeiteveneasier,turnyourpaperupsidedown.
Canyoufigureouthowtodrawthis?Giveitatry!Ifnot,don’tworry: afterall,it’shighlyunlikelythatsomeonewouldputamirrorattheendofabridge,sowhywouldyouwanttodrawonethereanyway?Perhapsbecauseit’sagreatdrawingexercise!
Two-pointperspective
Theboxeswedrewbeforehaveasidefacingus.Whenacornerfacesus,it’stimetoaddasecondvanishingpoint.
Drawahorizon,andtwowidelyspacedvanishingpoints.Fromthevanishingpoints,drawlinesdownwarduntiltheyintersect.
Drawasecondlinefromeachvanishingpoint,tocreatethebaseofabox.
Fromthethreeclosestcornersofthebase,drawverticallinesfortheedgesofthebox.
Decidewherethetopoftheboxwillbe,bymarkingtheclosestverticalline.Fromthatpoint,extendlinestowardthetwovanishingpointstocreatethetopedgesofthebox.Youdon’thavetodrawthelinesallthewaytothevanishingpoint—justfarenoughtocompletethetopofthebox!
Fromthepointwherethetopintersectstherightverticalline,drawalinetowardtheleftvanishingpoint.Fromthepointwherethetopintersectstheleftverticalline,drawalinetowardtherightvanishingpoint.
Eraseguidelines,andyou’vegotaboxintwo-pointperspective!
Tryaddingmoreboxesaroundtheoneyou’vedrawn.Asyoucansee,nothingstopsyoufromgoingabovethehorizon.Remember: horizonisyoureyelevel.You’relookingdownatthefirstthreeboxes;thefourthisateyelevel.
No,youdon’thavetogetquitethiscarriedaway,butonceyougetstartedit’sfuntoaddmoreandmoreboxes—keepgoing!
Aramp
Drawingaslopingsurfaceinperspectivefollowsthesameprinciplesasdrawingabox.It’salllogical—justalittlemoreconfusing.
Drawahorizonwithtwowidelyspacedvanishingpoints.Drawonelinefromtheleftvanishingpoint,andtwolinesfromtherightvanishingpoint.
Pickapointfortheendoftheramp,andfromtheredrawaverticalline.
Fromtheclosestcorner,drawalinetothetopoftheramp.
Fromthetopofyourramp,drawalinetotheleftvanishingpoint.
Atthebottomoftheverticalline,drawaverylightguidelinetotheleftvanishingpoint.Eventhoughthislinewouldn’tshowiftherampweresolid,youstillhavetodrawit.Canyouseewhy?
Youneedittodeterminethebackcorneroftheramp.Lightlyaddthisverticalline.
Addtheremainingslopinglinetocompletetheramp.
Noticewhathappenswhenyouextendthesidesoftheramp.They,too,convergeontheirownvanishingpoint.Youcanstopyourdrawinghere.Oryoucanmakeitmorecomplicated….
Forexpertsonly!
Drawanotherverticalline(arrow),andusetheleftvanishingpointtodrawanotherrectangleinperspective.
Drawanotherrectangle—findthetopbyputtingyourrulerontherightvanishingpointandthetopoftheramp(arrows).Thisway,it’sthesameheightastheramp.
Drawdiagonallinestoconnecttherampandthetallerrectangle.
Drawdiagonallinestoconnectthelastrectangle.
Drawthetwolastdiagonallines.Useyourrulerandtheleftvanishingpointtomakesuretheendsareinperspective.
Fromthecloseredgeofthisbridge-likestructure,maketwoverticallinesdownward.
Ifyou’vemadeitthisfar,I thinkyou’reinagoodpositiontokeepexploringonyourown.Followmyexample,orgowildandinventyourownstructure.Itcangoup,itcangosideways.Itjusthastostaybetweenthetwovanishingpoints.
Whichweshouldtalkaboutnext.
Vanishingpoints…
Youcancreatedifferentfeelingsinyourpicturedependingonwhereyouplacethevanishingpoints.
Placingthemclosetogether,aswe’vedoneforconveniencesofar,createsthesenseofobjectsloomingtowardyou—ratherdramatic.
Amore“normal”viewmightnothaveanyvanishingpointsinthepicture—maybeone,butcertainlynottwo.
Thefartherthevanishingpointslietotheside,thelessapparentdistortionyourviewerwillseeinthefinisheddrawing.
Youmightfinditdifficulttodrawvanishingpointsoffthesideofyourpaper,unlessyouhaveadraftingtable,but…
…bycroppingthepicture,yougetthesameeffect.
…andcameralenses
Ifyou’veeverusedacamerawithazoomlens,youwillseeaconnection.
Vanishingpointsinthepicture,orclosetotheedgeofthepicture,createawide-angleview.
Vanishingpointsfartheroutcreatea“normal”view.
Whenthevanishingpointsliefaroutsidethepicture,linesconvergingonthemlookalmostparallel.Thiscreatestheeffectofatelephotolens.Noticethewonderfulperspectivepatterninthelawn!
Here’sanotherexampleofadifferentcameralens—actuallyazoomlensatdifferentfocallengths.Canyoulocatethevanishingpointsforthetruckinthesetwophotos?
Moreaboutthehorizonandeyelevel
Let’slookatsomeexamplesofchanginghorizonandeyelevel.
Perchedonthescorchinghotfenderofanotherschoolbus(thiswasausedschoolbuslot),Iwaslookingdownatthisschoolbus,soitliesbelowthehorizoninthepicture.Canyoufindthehorizoninthisphoto?
Backontheground(phew!)Itakeanotherphoto.Where’sthehorizon?(Canyouthinkofawaytoestimatemyheightfromthisphotograph?)
Nowthebusloomsaboveme(lookfamiliar?). Whereisthevanishingpointforthelinesonthesideofthebus?Whereisthevanishingpointforthelinesonthefrontgrilleofthebus?
Thesephotographslookperfectlynormal,right?Nowtrydrawingroughboxdrawingsofeach.Youwillbeamazedhowweirdtheyare!Trydrawingthemfreehand(withoutaruler)ifyouwant.Inreality,thingslikeschoolbusesaren’tperfectboxes,sodrawingslikethesewouldbejustthestartingpointofarealdrawing.Imaginetheseclunkyboxesasbarsofsoap,whichyouwouldthencarvetomakethefinaldrawing,oncethecorrectperspectiveisestablished.
Howstrange—thehorizonliesexactlyatthetopofthebus.Lookatthephoto—itreallydoes.Drawit.
Fromthisangle,therearwheelbecomessurprisinglysmallcomparedtothefront.Justfollowtherules,anddrawit.
Samehere—cantherearwheelreallybethatsmall?Measureitonthephoto.Lookattheguidelines.Followtherulesof3-D.Justdrawit.
Curvedobjectsin3-D
Noteveryvehiclehastheconvenientboxylookofaschoolbus.Butthesameprinciplesofperspectiveapply.
Drawaboxoutlinesimilartothatoftheschoolbus.
Addwheels,usingthevanishingpointandguidelinestokeeptheminperspectivewitheachother.Notethattheellipseforthefrontwheelisslightlywiderthantherearwheel,makingthefrontwheelappearslightlyturned.
Addacurvedfender,goingbehindthebackofthefrontwheel,andcoveringpartofthefront.Continuethecurveacrossthebottomofthecar’sfront,andmaketheoppositefender.
Drawtherearfenderandlinealongthebottomoftheside.
Addthecurvingtopofthecar,andtheoutlineofthewindowsontheside.
Drawthewindshield.Noticehowthetopcurvesup,andthebottomcurvesdown.
Addovalsforheadlights,onewiderandonethinner.
Adddetails: linesforthedoor,rearviewmirrors,hoodinsignia,parkinglights,andhubcapsonthewheels.
Eraseguidelines,addsomeshading,andpresto!It’sacarinperspective!
Note: ifyou’reinterestedindrawingcars,checkoutmybookDrawCars.
A3-Dcheckerboard
Thebeautyofperspectivedrawingisthewonderfuleffectsofdepthyoucanachieve.Thedownsideisthedrudgeryofdrawing allthoselines. Asyoucompletethisdrawing,you’llseewhatImean.Butit’sworthit!
Drawahorizon,twovanishingpoints(VP1,VP2),andtwosetsofguidelines.
Fromtheclosertothefartherintersectionsofthetwosetsoflines,makeanewguidelinetothehorizontoestablishanewvanishingpoint(VP3).
FromVP3,drawalineasyouseeinthisdrawing.
Thisnewguidelinecreatesyetanotherintersection.Fromit,drawalinebacktoVP1.
Aha! Anewintersection!Fromthis,drawalinetoVP2.
Andnow—yetanotherintersection,fromwhichyoucandrawanotherlinetoVP1.
Keepgoing!
Aswithearlierperspectiveexercises,thisonelooksbestifcropped.Impressive,isn’tit?
Perspectiveinaction:ahouse
Forconvenienceinthispicture,I’veplacedthevanishingpointsclosetogether.Amore“normal”viewwouldpositionthevanishingpointswelloutsidethepicture.
Drawthehorizonwithaleftandrightvanishingpoint.Makeaverticallineforthecornerofthehouse,andfromitdrawtwoguidelinestotherightvanishingpoint.
Makeasecondverticallineforthebackcornerofthehouse.
Drawlinesfromthefirstverticallinetotheleftvanishingpoint.
Makeanotherverylightguideline,fromthesecondverticallinetotheleftvanishingpoint.
Drawaverticallineforthethirdcornerofthehouse.Makeanotherverylightguidelinetotherightvanishingpoint.
Toputthepeakoftheroofoverthecenterofthewall,wehavetofindthecenterofthewall.Dothiswithlightlinesconnectingthecorners.
FromthecenteroftheXonthewall,makeaverticalline.Fromthetopofit,drawtheslopinglinesoftheroof.
Fromthepeakoftheroof,makeaguidelinetotheleftvanishingpoint.
Nowweneedtolocatetheotherendoftheroof.Fromthecenterofthetopoftherightwall(wheretheverticallinetotheroofpeakcrosses),drawalightguidelinetolocatethecenterofthebackwall.
Fromthecenterofthebackwall,drawaverticalline.Thebackendoftheroofiswhereitcrossesthetopguideline.
Drawtheslopinglineforthebackoftheroof.
Let’smakeanaddition!Drawtwolinesfromtheleftvanishingpointtoextendthewallofthehouse.
Drawaverticallineforthecorneroftheaddition.
Fromthetopandbottom,drawlightguidelinestotherightvanishingpoint.
Lineupyourrulerontheleftvanishingpointandthebottomcornerofthehouse,tolocatetheothercorneroftheaddition.
Drawaverticallineforthebackedgeoftheaddition.
Fromthatline,drawoneslopinglinetothehouse…
…andanother.
Adddetailstothehouseanditssurroundings.Drawsomebarnswithdifferentroofangles.Addaswimmingpool,somefields,androads.Drawalightgridofguidelinesinthesky,andfollowitasyoudrawclouds.Eventhoughirregularinshape,cloudscanaddperspectivetoyourdrawingaswell.Hey! What’sthisIsee? Betterdrawsomepowerpoles,too,becauseIseeapowerpoleinspectioncraftapproaching.
Addingshadowsin3-D
Shadowsinperspectivedrawingalsousevanishingpoints—butnotalwaysinobviousway.
Lightsourcebehind
Drawabasichouseusingtwo-pointperspective.Leaveroomatthetopforthelightsource,androomatthebottomfortheshadow.Markthelightsourceonyourpaper,anddirectlybeneathitonthehorizon,marktheshadowvanishingpoint.
Fromtheshadowvanishingpoint,drawlinesthroughtheoutsidecornersofthehouse,atgroundlevel.
Drawanotherlinefromtheshadowvanishingpointthroughtheclosestcornerofthehouse,atgroundlevel.
Drawanotherlinefromtheshadowvanishingpointthroughthemiddleoftheendwall,atgroundlevel.
Now,fromthelightsource,drawalinethroughthecornerofthehousedirectlyabovethefirstshadowvanishingpointlineyoudrew.Youdon’thavetodrawtheentireline: you’resimplylookingforthepointatwhichitintersectsthelinefromtheshadowvanishingpoint (arrow).
Fromthelightsource,drawanotherlinethroughtheclosestcorneroftheroofuntilitmeetsthesecondlinefromtheshadowvanishingpoint.Makealineconnectingthispointwiththepointestablishedinthelaststep.
Fromthelightsource,drawalinethroughthepeakoftheroofuntilitreachestheshadowvanishingpointlinerunningthroughthecenterofthehouse.Makealineconnectingthispointwiththepointestablishedinthelaststep.
Fromthelightsource,drawalinethroughthefarcorneroftheroofuntilitintersectsthefarthestlinefromtheshadowvanishingpoint.Thisoneisalittletricky—remember,followtherules!
Eraseguidelinesandshadeinshadowareas,andnowyouhaveaverypreciseshadowofthehouse.
Thequestionsremains,doyoureallyneedaverypreciseshadowofthehouse?Notreally.However,onceyouunderstandthetechnique,itwillbeeasiertodrawrealisticshadowsinyourdrawings.Afterall,nobody (exceptforfellowartists)actuallylooksattheshadowsinadrawingorpainting.Buttheymakeahugedifference.
Moreshadowsin3-D
Lightsourceinfront
Whenthelightsourcecastsashadowbehindobjects,youneedalightvanishingpointratherthanalightsource—beneaththehorizon!
Drawahouseintwo-pointperspective.Betweenthehousevanishingpointsonthehorizon,maketheshadowvanishingpoint.Directlybelowit,makethelightvanishingpoint.
Fromtheshadowvanishingpoint,drawalinetotheleftcornerofthehouse.
Nowaddalinetothepointonthegrounddirectlybelowthepeakoftheroof.
Drawanotherlinetothenextcornerofthehouse.
Theshadowvanishingpointcanstill“see”onemorecornerofthehouse.Drawalinetoit.
Fromthelightvanishingpoint,drawalinetothecorneroftheroofdirectlyabovethefirstshadowvanishingpointline.Noticewherethetwolinesintersect.
Alsofromthelightvanishingpoint,drawalinetothepeakoftheroof.Followthelinelyingdirectlybeneaththepeakoftheroof,towardtheshadowvanishingpoint.Wherethetwolinesintersect,drawalineconnectingthemwiththeintersectionyoucreatedinthelaststep.
Drawalinetothenextcorneroftheroof,andanotherlineasinthelaststep.
Doitonceagainforthethirdcorneroftheroof.
Younowhaveestablishedapreciseshadowforthehouse,butnotice,afterallthatwork,howmuchoftheshadowishidden.(Afterall,itisbehindthehouse.)
3-pointperspective
Youcanaddathirdvanishingpointforevenmoredramaticeffects.
Drawtworectanglesintwo-pointperspective.
Nowaddathirdvanishingpoint,veryfar offthebottomedgeofyourpaper.Drawlinesfromallthecornerstoyourthirdvanishingpoint.Prettycool!
Anotherwaytodividespace
Doyourememberhowtodividerecedingspacesevenlyusingavanishingpoint?Here’saneveneasierwaytodoit.
Fromyourfirsttwovanishingpoints,drawlinestoestablishthetopfloorofthebuildings.Inthemiddleofoneofthem,connectthecornerstomakeanX.FromthecenteroftheX,drawalinetoyourthirdvanishingpoint—butonlyuntilitcrossesthelineyoujustdrew.Nowyouhavethecenterofthebottomofthisfloor.
Fromthetopcornerofthetopfloor,drawalightlinethroughthecenterofthebottom.Whereitintersectswiththesideofthebuilding,makeaverylightmarkandusethistocreatethenextfloor.
Repeattheprocedure.Onceyouunderstandtheconcept,youcansimplymakelightmarksasyougo,ratherthandrawinglotsofdiagonallinesyoudon’twantinthefinaldrawing.
Whenyoucannolongerdividethefloorsonthecloserbuilding,youcanpickuponthefartherbuilding,makinganXandcontinuing.
4-pointperspective?
Youcanseethatathirdvanishingpointalsoworkswhenyoulookup.Ifyoulookstraightahead,wouldyouthenusefourvanishingpoints?
No.But,ifyouallowthelinestocurve,aswithafisheyelens,itworks.Thisisactuallywhatyoureyesees.Yourbrainmakesstraightlines.
Thelaserparadox
Imaginestandingoutsideonenight,andseeinganunbendinglaserbeam,shiningbetweentwopointshighaboveyou.
Youturntheotherdirection,andthere’sthesamebeam,nowshiningatadifferentangle!
Youknowthebeamdoesn’tbend—howdoesitconnectinthemiddle?Takeadeepbreath,letyourmindgoblank—andsureenough,you’llseethebeamasyoureyedoes:acurve.Youdon’tneedalaser.Tryitfacingthewallofalargeroom,likeagym.
Multiplevanishingpoints
Whilefour-pointperspectivedoesn’treallywork,thatdoesn’tmeanyourdrawingislimitedtotwoorthreevanishingpoints.
Iftheobjectsyou’redrawingarenotalignedwitheachother(parallel),thennaturallyeachwillhaveitsownsetofvanishingpoints.
Similarly,iftheobjectyou’redrawingisn’trectangular,you’llneedanewvanishingpointforeachnewangleyouintroduce.
Asyoupractice3-Ddrawing,don’tfeelyoualwayshavetousearuler.Trysketchinginperspective.Playwiththeconcepts.Makemistakes.Enjoy!
Remember…
Practice
Oneofthegreatsecretsofourworldisthatbehindeverysuccessthere’salwaysplentyofpractice.Thepeoplewhodoamazingfeatsofdaring,skill,oringenuityhavebeenpracticing,oftenformuchlongerthanyou’dimagine.They’veprobablyfailedmoreoftenthanyoucanimagine,too,sodon’twastetimebeingdiscouraged.Ifyourdrawingsdon’tlookexactlythewayyou’dlikethemto,especiallywhenyoustartoutwithanewidea,figureoutwhatwentwrong,anddoitagainright!
Saveyourdrawings!
Wheneveryoudoadrawing—orevenasketch—putyourinitials(orautograph!)anddateonit.Andsaveit—maybenotuntilitturnsyellowandcrumblestodust,butatleastforseveralmonths.Sometimes,hidinginyourportfolio,theywillmysteriouslyimprove!I’veseenithappenoftenwithmyowndrawings,especiallytheonesIknewwerenogoodatall,butkeptanyway.
Ifyoudon’thaveyourownportfolio,here’sanideaofhowyoumightmakeoneforyourself(youcanfindafancyoneatanartsupplystoreifyou’drather):
Publicationinfo
Copyright©1999-2015DouglasC.DuBosque.Allrightsreserved,includingtherightofreproductioninwholeorinpart,inanyform.PublishedbyPeelProductions,Inc.
We’dloveyourfeedbackontheelectronicversionofDraw3-D.Withchangingdevicesandscreenresolutions,findingthe“happymedium”presentsachallenge.Pleaseletusknowhowtheelectronicversionworksordoesn’tinyourexperience:ebooks@123draw.com.
eISBN978-0-939217-69-4
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData(printedition)
DuBosque,D.C.
Draw3-D: stepbystepperspectivedrawing/byDougDuBosquep.cm.Summary: Providesinstructionsformakingperspectivedrawings.ISBN 0-939217-14-71.Perspective--juvenileliterature.2.Drawing--Technique--Juvenileliterature.[1.Perspective.2.Drawing--Technique.]I.Title.II.Title: Draw3D.
NC750.D871998
742--dc2198-42174
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